PETER LUCAS: In Iowa, hints that being presidential matters

His loss in Iowa at the hands of Texas Sen. Ted Cruz was a setback, although it actually could have done Trump some good. But Trump cannot afford two losses in a row.

You can always learn something from defeat. And a little humility never hurt anyone, and Trump, who is not used to losing, sure could use some.

And he surprisingly flashed a little of it when he graciously congratulated Cruz, the man he had called a liar, on his first-place finish. But Trump still could not help himself from talking about how much ahead he was in the polls in New Hampshire even as he lost Iowa.

Yet the little self-effacement he showed in defeat was good. As Ted Turner once said of humility, "If I only had a little humility, I'd be perfect."

Unfortunately it did not last very long. Trump was back in attack mode Tuesday night, lashing out again at Cruz.

While Cruz did gather 28 percent of the Republican caucus vote to Trump's 24 percent, Cruz is not expected to win in the New Hampshire primary. So Trump should have his way in the Granite State. A second loss for him would be devastating.

While former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, once the front-runner for the GOP presidential nomination, has seen his campaign turn to rubble, fellow Floridian Sen. Marco Rubio had a good day in Iowa, coming in third in the caucus vote.

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It is now a three-man race for the GOP presidential nomination as Bush, the presidential heir apparent, crashed and burned after frittering away millions of dollars on television ads attacking Rubio, whom he once mentored in Florida politics. His political consultants did him in.

The only consultant Bush should have listened to was his mother. Barbara Bush, 88, told him not to run. The wife of one president (George H.W. Bush) and the mother of another (George W. Bush), Mrs. Bush said the public had had "enough of Bushes." She was right. Iowa agreed. Always listen to your mother.

Rubio showed strength in Iowa, coming in only one percentage point behind Trump. His aim now is to beat out Cruz in New Hampshire, which would put him in good position going into South Carolina. Bush could now take some lessons from his former understudy.

One of the messages from Iowa to Trump is that voters are looking for a leader who looks, talks and acts presidential, as both Cruz and Rubio do, and as Trump does not.

Trump's outspokenness and his brash persona have gotten him a big following, to be sure, but his insults and outrageous comments wear thin after a while. You listen to Trump speak and you say, "Did he really say that?" and if you have any doubt, Trump says it again.

At a rally the night before the Iowa vote -- and obviously concerned about potential hecklers -- Trump said to the crowd: "If you see anyone ready to throw a tomato, knock the crap out of him. Seriously."

A thug like Russian President Vladimir Putin might say something like that -- and even have it done -- but one cannot picture the president of the United States issuing such a command. Perhaps this is why Trump and the tough-talking Putin seem to get along.

Despite coming in second, Trump is still the front-runner among the Republicans. He could probably have run the table had he won in Iowa, but he didn't, even though he was "honored' to come in second.

Hillary Clinton could have walked away a clear winner in the Democrat caucus as well, but she didn't either. She barely squeaked by. The talk among Democrats is that if she could not put socialist Sen. Bernie Sanders, 74, the last Bolshevik standing, away in Iowa then she has problems.

Part of her problem with Sanders stems from the fact that Sanders appeals to the young "free stuff" crowd, the people who buy into his socialist, utopian dream of a country where everything is free -- free food, free medical care, free college.

Socialism is great. It levels the playing field and makes everyone equally poor and miserable.

Another problem for Clinton is that Sanders, who hails from nearby Vermont, is way ahead in New Hampshire and should clearly defeat Clinton there on Tuesday.

In addition, the FBI is still investigating Clinton's use, or misuse, of super confidential emails during her tenure as secretary of state, a job she probably now wishes she never had taken.

A lust for power does strange things to people.

Peter Lucas' political column appears Tuesday and Friday. Email him at luke1825@aol.com.

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